Wool-pulling machine.



0. G. RIESKE. WOOL PULLING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED-NQV.16| 1916. IIENEWED SEPT. 3.1918.

Patented Nov. 5, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 n.: nan-u runs co.. rnamunm. vusymanw. o. c.

o. e. mEsKE.

WOOL PULLING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. I6. 1916. RENEWED SEPT. 3. 1918.

l 284,203. Patented Nov. 5, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

OTTO G. RIESKE, 0F BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

WOOL-PULLING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed November 16, 1916, Serial No. 131,711. Renewed September 3, 1918. Serial No. 252,483.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, O'rro G. RIESKE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wool-Pulling Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My present invention has for its special object the provision of an extremely simple and highly etlicient device for pulling Wool or hair from skins, and to such ends, generally stated, the invention consists of the novel devices and combinations of devices hereinafter described and dened in the claims.

Broadly considered, the invention is capable of use for pulling various things from the skins to which they are attached, or from which they have grown. As a further example of the use of the device, it will be found serviceable for picking feathers from fowls. However, the preferred form of the invention illustrated is especially designed for pulling wool from the skins. 1n practice this operation has usually been performed by hand and` is a slow laborious operation resulting in high cost for the removal of the Wool from the skins. The improved device presently to be described, does better pulling than can be done by hand and does it rapidly and at very greatly reduced cost. t

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the invention, like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a vertical section taken centrally and longitudinally through the iniproved so-called wool puller; o

` Fig. 2 is an end elevation looking at the. device from the left toward the right, 1n respect to Fig. l, and with the cap plate removed;

Fig. 3 is a Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the comb of the device, certain of the parts being indicated by dotted lines; i

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view partly in plan and partly in section showing certain of the gear mechanism;

Fig. 6 is a section taken approximately section on the line 3 3 of on the line 6-6 of Fig. 3, some parts being briken away and some parts being removed; an Y Fig. 7 is a view in section showing' a table for holding the skin While the wool is being removed therefrom by my improved Wool puller.

In this improved device, the wool is pulled by the action of power driven rollers that are carried by a power driven rotary tube that is mounted in a suitable holder. The pulling rollers are hollow and have peripheral passages, and the rotary tube is connected to a fan or other means for producing partial vacuum therein.

The skin is placed on a perforated table, and as a feature of the invention, is held thereon by suction or partial vacuum produced, also, preferably by a fan. The rotary suction tube 8 is extended through a sleeve-like hand piece 9, and is preferably journaled therein by ball bearings 10 interposed between annular ball runways 11 and 12 secured, respectively, on the said tube S and sleeve or hand piece 9. The front end of this tube 8 projects through the sleeve 9 and is provided with longitudinally spaced outstanding flanges 13 and several circumferentially spaced points, as shown, three such points. The rotary suction tube 8 is provided with longitudinal slots 14 that ex* tend longitudinally between the opposing faces of the outstanding flanges 13, and Working outward of but adjacent to each such slot 14 is a pair of cooperating pulling rollers 15 and 16. The rollers 15 are hollow and have peripheral slots or air passages 17, while the rollers 16 are, or may be, solid and may be of metal Wood, or wood fiber. The rollers 15, of course, may be of metal,

Patented Nov. 5, 1918.

wood, rubber or any other suitable material.

The rollers 15 have projecting trunnions 15a that are journaled in segmental bearing blocks 18 that are mounted to slide in annular grooves 13a of the flanges 13. The rollers 16 have projecting trunnions 16, which, as shown, are journaled in segmental bearing blocks 19 that are ixed to the said channels 13a. Coiled springs Q0 interposed between the blocks 18 and 19 yieldingly press the coperating rollers 15 and 16 t0- gcther to produce the required gripping action for pulling the wool, or the like. The outstanding webs of the flanges 13 have segmental slots that permit the limited movements of the rollers 15 and bearing blocks 18. The outer end of the tube 8 is closed by a disk-like cap plate 21 secured thereto by screws, or otherwise. The inner end trunnions 15aL of the hollow rollers 15 are provided with pinions 22 and the rear trunnions of the lrollers 16 are provided with pinions 23 that are laterally offset from the pinions 22 and run in mesh with an annular internal gear 24 carried by the enlarged front end 9a of the sleeve 9. The pinions 22 mesh with wide faced idle pinions 26 journaled, one to each ofthe sliding bearing blocks 18 and meshing also with the internal gear 24. l/ith this arrangement of gears, the coperating pulling rollers 15 and 16 are reversely driven in the direction of arrows marked thereon in F ig. 3, when the suction tube 8 is rotated in the direction of the arrow marked thereon in F ig. 3.

At its rear end, the tube 9 is expanded,` and at one point therein is mounted a driving pinion 27 that meshes with an annular spur gear 28 secured on the rear end of the said suction tube 8. The expanded rear end of the said sleeve 9 is rigidly secured to a head plate 29 shown as formed as an integral flange of a non-rotary section tube 30, the front end of which is loosely telescoped into the said rotary tube 8. This non-rotary suction tube 30 is, as indicated, connected to the intake of a fan 31. This fan, as shown, is driven from an electric motor 32, the armature shaft of which is connected by a flexible shaft 33 to a stub shaft 34, and hence, driven thereby.

By reference to Fig. l, it will be noted that the rear ball runway 11 and the annular spur gear 28 are both screw-threaded on the rear end of the rotary suction tube 8. This affords means for adjusting the ball bearings and the gear acts as a lock nut.

For holding the skin away from the rollers, while the wool is being pulled therefrom, I provide a comb 35, which by means of a divided clamping ring 36, is rigidly, but adjustably secured on the front end portion of the non-rotary sleeve 9. The said sleeve 9 is preferably externally knurled or roughened so that it is adapted to be held in the hand and against rotation while it is being moved to direct the puller to a proper working point. In Fig. 7, the skin is indicated by the character 3,/ and the wool by the character y1.

As a feature of the invention, a perforated ltable or faceplate 37 is provided as a support for the skin and air-tight pan 38 is secured to the underside of this table and connected by a suction tube 39 to the intake of a fan 40 which, as shown, is also driven by the motor 32. Vith this table, when the skin is laid with its back over the perfora Ations thereof and the pan 38 is subjected to suction or partial vacuum, the skin will be firmly held against slipping, while the wool is being pulled therefrom by means of the puller described.

YWhen the puller is in operation, the comb runs through the wool and upon the skin and prevents the skin from being pulled into contact with rollers, and also, of course, prevents the rollers from being pulled down onto the skin. 1n the pulling action, the wool is first taken up by the coperating pulling rollers 15 and 16, and by the feed movement thereof, assisted by the suction from within the rotary tube 8, is drawn into the said rotary tube. The pulling action, however, is very greatly assisted by the rotation of the tube 8 and carries the pulling rollers constantly upward during the pulling action, and thereby produces, at the proper point, a sort of a jerk which insures the final separation of the wool from the skin. This pullingaction therefore closely imitates that produced by hand operation, wherein the wool is jerked from the skin, but, however, produces a much more positive and even pulling action. rhe wool, as fast as it is delivered into the suction tube 8 is carried from the rollers and ydelivered to the fan 31, and from thence, tov a suitable receptacle, not shown.

As already indicated, the puller is adapted for use, not only for pulling wool or fur from skins, but also for pulling feathers from fowls and for similar work. In fact, with proper adjustment of the comb, it becomes a highly eihcient feather puller or plucker. The preferred form only of the device has been illustrated, but it will, of course, be understood that I desire to claim the invention broadly in all of its possible modified forms within the scope of my invention. The efficiency of the device has been demonstrated in actual practice by a -full sized working device.

ried thereby and delivering to the interior thereof, means for producing partial vacuum in said suction tube, and power driven means for rotating said tube and for driving the said rollers while they are being carried by said tube.

e. A pulling device of the kind described comprising a rotary power driven suction tube having peripheral` air intakel passages and cooperating pulling rollers vcarried thereby and associated with the said air intake passages and delivering to the interior of said tube, means for producing partialV vacuum in said suction tube, and power driven means for rotating said tube and for driving the said rollers while they are being carried by said tube.

5. A pulling device comprising a rotary suction tube having coperating rollers carried thereby and delivering to the interior thereof, and a portable hand piece in which said rotary tube is journaled.

6. A pulling device comprising a rotary suction tube having cooperating rollers carried thereby and delivering to the interior thereof, and means yieldingly pressing the coperating pulling rollers together.

7. A. pulling device of the kind described comprising a sleeve-like hand piece, a suction tube rotatably mounted therein and projecting therefrom, said tube, at its projecting end, having cireumferentially spaced air intake passages, cooperating pulling rollers associated with said intake passages and carried by said rotary suction tube and delivering to the interior thereof, certain of said rollers being hollowT and having peripheral air passages.

8. A pulling device of the kind described comprising a sleeve-like hand piece, a suction tube rotatably mounted therein and projecting therefrom, said tube, at its projecting end, having circumferentially spaced air intake passages, cooperating pulling rolly ers associated with said intake passages and carried by said rotary suction tube and delivering to the interior thereof,rcertan of said rollers being hollow and having peripheral air passages, an internal gear on one end of said hand piece, roller driving pinions carried by said rotary tube and meshing with said internal gear, an external gear on the other end of said rotary tube, a pinion mounted on said hand piece and meshing with said latter gear, a iexible driving shaft transmitting motion to said pinion, and a non-rotary flexible suction tube leading from said rotary suction tube.

9. A pulling device of the kind described comprising a sleeve-like hand piece, a suction tube rotatably mounted therein and projecting therefrom, said tube, at its projecting end, having crcumferentially spaced air intake passages, cooperating pulling rollers associated with said intake passages and carried by said rotary suction tube and deliver-ing to the interior thereof, certain of said rollers being hollow and having peripheral air passages, and a comb secured to said handpiece and underlying the projecting roller-equipped end of said rotary sleeve.

in testimony whereof I aiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

OTTO Gr. RIESKE. Witnesses:

Bannion G. WHEELER, HARRY D. KILGORE.

Copies ot this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of I'atents,

Washington, D. C. 

